Honduras: Journalist Sonia Pérez Faces Criminal Charges After Reporting On Evictions Of Indigenous People
Location: HondurasDate: July 28, 2022
Journalist at Radio Progresso, Sonia Pérez López faces criminal charges on accusations of trespass & private property damage after reporting on evictions of Indigenous people in San José. But in a subsequent hearing, the prosecutors asked to drop the case against Sonia, citing a lack of evidence. The Coalition For Women In Journalism expresses concern over the criminal charges brought against Sonia; The CFWIJ denounces the accusations and stresses that the law must not be abused to silence the press.
The charges against Sonia go back to May 18, when she was reporting the expulsion of dozens of Indigenous people from San Jose; the complaint was applied by Juan Argueta, a landowner in the municipality; He alleged that Sonia trespassed on his property while covering the story.
Four days after covering, Argueta filed his criminal complaint against Sonia; he accused Sonia that she damaged his private property by trespassing on his land.
Sonia transmitted to a criminal court in the municipality of Marcala, in the western department of La Paz, which held its first initial hearing in the case on June 19. Still, on that day, the court prohibited Sonia from leaving the country; besides another decision preventing her from approaching Argueta as a convict, she also ordered a report to the court every 30 days while the case was ongoing.
The complaint also claimed that Sonia was a member of the "Nueva Palestina Indigenous council", representing the leadership of the indigenous people who were pushed out of that land on the reporting day, May 18. Due to the complaint, Sonia was charged with damaging property between 30 members of the Indigenous people of the Lenca community.
Sonia is an activist too and a member of the Lenca Indigenous group, but on that day, she wasn't representing the council; she was just a journalist, Sonia who started covering local issues for the Radio in 2018, was documenting the expelling of indigenous people from the ground; she insisted and told CPJ. July 28, in an ensuing hearing, prosecutors asked the court to drop the case against Sonia and the other defendants and noting a lack of evidence.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism asks for dropping all criminal accusations against Sonia, who maybe face prison sentences if convicted of trespassing, four years in prison, in addition to damaging private property charges, which could reach five years in the Honduran criminal law.
The CFWIJ expresses its deep concerns about Sonia's safety as well; back to the unidentified crime that happened in 2011, the Radio Progreso manager Nery Orellana was shot and killed in the western department of Lempira, Which makes us worry about the safety of the journalist who works for the same station.
The CFWIJ asks to stop using the laws to punish and silence the press; the CFWIJ ask to drop the charges against Sonia Pérez López, and stop prosecuting female journalists for doing their jobs.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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